A Neurodivergent New Year: What We’re Leaving Behind (and Taking Forward)
At our recent ND BrainSpace – Neurodivergent New Year, we asked two simple but powerful questions:
What do you want to leave behind?
What do you want to take forward?
Here’s a reflection on what emerged.
🌫️ What we’re ready to leave behind
A strong theme across the group was overload — not in a dramatic sense, but the quiet, cumulative kind that builds when we keep pushing past our limits.
People spoke about wanting to leave behind:
Saying yes to too much
Overextending time and energy
Moving too fast
Not factoring in rest and recovery
Constantly changing plans because capacity ran out
This wasn’t about “doing better” — it was about recognising burnout before it takes over.
There was also a lot of honesty around self-criticism and people pleasing:
Harsh inner voices
Over-worrying about things we can’t control
Fear of judgement — from others and ourselves
Accepting less than we deserve
Alongside this came practical stresses:
Debt and spending on things that don’t actually help
Unhealthy coping strategies (including alcohol)
Giving energy to people or situations that drain rather than nourish
And that familiar neurodivergent stuckness:
Weeks where nothing really seemed to happen
Too much “umming” and not enough doing
Appointments, delays, and life admin hanging over everything
Not failure — fatigue.
🌱 What we want to take forward
What stood out most here was gentleness paired with intention.
People want to take forward:
Clearer boundaries
More realistic expectations (especially around time)
Creating space rather than filling it
Not relying on other people’s promises for stability
There was also a strong thread of self-understanding, particularly post-diagnosis:
Learning more about ourselves
Making healthier choices with our neurodivergence, not against it
Being more compassionate about how we function
Care looked very practical and very human:
Exercise as routine, not punishment
Music (including a lot of love for 80s playlists)
Audiobooks
LED candles
Meditation alongside movement
Food choices that support energy rather than perfection
And importantly — joy:
Creativity and crafts (little and often)
Travel and new experiences
Decorating and making homes feel good
Music, friendships, and sharing achievements
Starting new ventures
Trying things without endlessly putting them off
People don’t want to shrink their lives — they want to grow them sustainably.
🧠 Gentle action, not pressure
We talked about the five-minute rule — trying something for just five minutes when motivation feels low. Not as a productivity trick, but as a way to lower the barrier to starting.
Music came up as a powerful motivator too, especially music linked to childhood — helping access energy, familiarity, and emotional regulation when things feel flat.
There was also space to talk about worry:
Worrying about things we can’t control
Worrying about being judged
The overlap between external judgement and internal self-criticism
And how boundaries — with others and ourselves — can soften that.
🌟 The bigger picture
Zooming out, this wasn’t about “doing more”.
It was about:
Moving from overdrive to regulation
From self-judgement to self-trust
From coping to choosing
From pushing harder to listening better
This is what a neurodivergent New Year can look like — not a reinvention, but a rebalancing.
Small steps. Realistic rhythms. More kindness.
And permission to build a life that actually fits.
If you’d like support exploring this for yourself — through therapy, coaching, or creative reflection — you’re very welcome here.
You are not a problem to fix … it’s ok to choose your way.